Missing Phoenix girl, 2, found safe; in CPS custody

A Phoenix 2-year-old who went missing Monday evening has been found and taken into state Child Protective Services' custody for unknown reasons, Phoenix police Officer James Holmes said.

Karma Diaz, went missing sometime between 11:30 p.m. and midnight.

Phoenix police believe she may have been in a nearby wash last night because her clothes and skin were dirty. She was found outside a neighbor's house Tuesday morning. She doesn't seem to be physically hurt, Holmes said.

A neighbor who lives down the street from Karma and whose brother lives across the street from her said she found the girl laying outside near the front door of her brother's house at about 8:50 a.m.

The 21-year-old mother of Karma and her boyfriend left their home about 11:30 p.m. to run an errand. The girl was asleep at the time.

An older couple who also lives in the home were also sleeping in the house, Holmes said. When the younger couple returned about midnight, the girl was missing and the back door was open. The light in the girl's bedroom was on, and it had been off when the couple left the house.

Authorities conducted door-to-door checks and searched the area around her home in the 4500 block of West Marco Polo Road, which is near 43rd Avenue and just south of Beardsley Road. A police helicopter used an infrared camera to search the area. There was no indication of suspicious activity in the case.

Authorities believed that Karma found a warm place to sleep.

Police brought in search teams and were using air scent search dogs, including bloodhounds, to assist in the search. They asked people in the neighborhood to look around their homes. Multiple agencies assisted the Phoenix Police Department in the search, including the Department of Public Safety, Maricopa County Sheriff's Office and Mesa Police Department.